Somehow eerily prescient of today (2016) and at the same time not. Stumbled on this as it was being run on Showtime and as I hadn't heard of it, I DVR'd it to watch later. It reminds me in part of In the Heat of Night (Sidney Poitier) and Murder in Coweta County (Andy Griffith). The theme of a rich man running not only his business but the town or county he lives in is certainly not new. but done well here. Basically Virgil Renchler (Orson Wells) owner of the Golden Empire Ranch is upset as his daughter Skippy (Colleen Miller) has taken up a friendship with one of the migrants working on the ranch. Renchler tells some of boys to teach the boy a lesson. Enjoying the assignment, they go too far and kill the boy. The sheriff Ben Sadler (Jeff Chandler) finds he needs to look into the incident even though the townspeople are against it as Renchler basically "owns" and runs the town and after all it was only a wetback (Mexican) who was killed. The cover up results in a second murder and Sadler decides he has to make a choice: the law or the town. Eventually things spin so out of control that the townspeople find they too must decide. We have the expected resolution with Renchler being arrested.
About two thirds into the film Sadler has a conversation with the town barber, Tony Santoro (Mario Siletti) who comments he understands the problems the Mexicans are facing more so than the other residents. He mentions his father had died recently at the age of 93; and after living in this country for thirty years, he still spoke no English. And as for Renchler, he adds that he, Santoro, still has relatives in Italy and that Sadler might recall they had a guy back there who ran the country the way Renchler runs the town. While it is a clear allusion to Mussolini, I suspect there are many viewers who wouldn't get it. Given the current political climate here and the attitude toward immigrants being espoused by some, the conversation has a certain poignancy and immediacy.
Jeff Chandler does a good job here. He imbues his character with the nuances of conflict he is dealing with, and the consequences of his choices on himself, his wife, his town. Worth a watch if you can find it, or if you like movies that are supposed to make you think. Pretty impressive for a B film from 1957.
About two thirds into the film Sadler has a conversation with the town barber, Tony Santoro (Mario Siletti) who comments he understands the problems the Mexicans are facing more so than the other residents. He mentions his father had died recently at the age of 93; and after living in this country for thirty years, he still spoke no English. And as for Renchler, he adds that he, Santoro, still has relatives in Italy and that Sadler might recall they had a guy back there who ran the country the way Renchler runs the town. While it is a clear allusion to Mussolini, I suspect there are many viewers who wouldn't get it. Given the current political climate here and the attitude toward immigrants being espoused by some, the conversation has a certain poignancy and immediacy.
Jeff Chandler does a good job here. He imbues his character with the nuances of conflict he is dealing with, and the consequences of his choices on himself, his wife, his town. Worth a watch if you can find it, or if you like movies that are supposed to make you think. Pretty impressive for a B film from 1957.